A Strong Will Can Pierce A Stone

A CHEEKY LITTLE TEASER

2009-04-25T01:10:00.000-07:00

so its been about 105 painful days of labourious animated
nonsense i have finished all animation/b.gs/etc...but o no the fun
doesnt stop...oh no sir because i have the joy and pleasure of
colouring every single frame again...
oh yeh and i have mumps....fun fun fooooocking fun!

ok ...so i have been keeping my cards preety close to my chest so far...
not through choice i might add, just havnt been blogging as much as i
should have...of coarse there have been many changes since the last
ramblings...one of which is the aesthetic,.

ok bare with me a second...for some reason i was trying to achieve
a very mature, painterly, textured aesthetic using inks and
parchment...all taditional like!? like so0000...

at first i was loving it, but it was soon clear that the choice of
aesthetic was incredibly hard to reproduce B/G after B/G...
ofcoarse im no chinese painter...so i was soon asking myself
"what the f%#k am i doing"

and so i headed towards a more graphic less detailed B/G aesthetic

ok i no it just a little tinkering in photoshop...
a few layer filters etc... but
i actually really like it,. its got the feel of chinese culture
but the graphic, solid, vector art feel of flash etc...
the characters also stand out more which is a real plus...
heres a few more examples of the new aesthetic - compared to the
old...

AESTHETIC/B.G/L.O DEVELOPMENTS

2009-02-17T11:10:00.000-08:00

i finally finished tinkering with my aesthetic...

I have been off the radar for almost a month now...but i feel all
is going well. I have almost 30 sec of finshed animation and about 1 min
worth of keys...i have also finished inking the first scene so hopefully
i will have a finished short teaser for wednesday.

Background examples

2009-01-13T06:36:00.000-08:00

CHARACTER ROTATIONS

2009-01-10T09:26:00.000-08:00

LING

JIA

THE TIGER (not finished yet...)

AESTHETIC MOCK-UP

2009-01-10T05:21:00.000-08:00

Need to experiment more with shadows etc but you get the idea!?

COLOURED CHARACTERS

2009-01-10T05:01:00.000-08:00

i decided that colour should be dull and pasty...dont
like the look of solid digital colour...especially when
the image isnt completely digitally traced...i.e in illustrator etc
this being so ive reinforced the idea of the old parchment look.
after rooting around in my art materials i randomly found
a small piece of rice paper...exactly what the chinese use for
their lush paintings...so using this as a backdrop for the robes, body
etc...it didnt look so strange...well at least i dont think so...!?

As my colour palette is dull and grayish...colouring the tiger orange
didnt seem an option...dont get me wrong i most certainly pondered
the idea for a while...anyway i prefer white tigers...more magical i suppose

LING

JIA

THE TIGER

BRUSH PAINTED LAYOUT/ASETHETIC CONT

2009-01-09T10:22:00.000-08:00

...im loving the look of this ^^^
...everything i was originally aiming for...
unfortunately i didnt paint it...
...however, its exactly the style
im going to aim for from now on. It looks dull and somber...
has the feel of weathered parchment...and it incorperates
strong use of pos/neg space...large shapes -- small positive detail.

here's a new and improved step by step formula for
my proposed layout/aesthetic...its not completely there yet...
but its heading in a direction im happy with

my brush work isnt brilliant...but it is slowly improving as
i get more confident...oh and LING hasnt been coloured yet.
...ill post colour tests tomorrow.

FINAL ANIMATIC

2009-01-07T12:50:00.000-08:00

mISSED THe RUSH!!!!

absolutely pissed i missed it! really gotta get a
new job...it sucks having to work on weds...

still no sound FX ...have a few stored already...
there are still sooo many waiting to be recorded

A BRUSH PAINTED LAYOUT

2009-01-07T12:23:00.000-08:00

heres a simple step by step formula for my
proposed layout/aesthetic

from the hand-made to the not yet finished...

painted with brush and watercolurs...captured...

...contrast/brigtness...shadows etc...

...foreground layers etc..

...colour photo filter -- set the mood -- contrast/brightness etc..

A BRUSH PAINTED AESTHETIC

2008-12-12T03:27:00.000-08:00

my shiny new chinese brushes finally arrived...after
much experimentation i finally got the hang of it
(at least i think i have) anyway with my aesthetic in
mind i attempted to forge some sort of uniformed style
from the mess

^^^^ I love the simplicity of the brush strokes...the
strong use of positive/negative space...its almost graphical!
This is the style of painting i wish achieve...simple, dull,
and graphic...

still pondering over my aesthetic i found this image...
(probably the most important piece of reference material yet)

Very nice indeed...i think the colours wrong for
what i need but apart from that...its a good look

the shadows and colour backdrops could be manipulated
digitally so that i dont get lost in a sea of colour washes

a simple texturizing filter could then be added
to give the effect of old parchment

...of coarse chinese painting has that certain
feeling...but there are many styles...basically i tried to
reproduce a few different styles...just to see which one
gels best with my own style of mark making...

^^^^ My very own chinese chinese style

LAYOUT...LAR DEE DAR

2008-12-08T13:40:00.000-08:00

^^^the dribble

i spent hours playing with all sorts of compostitions
and i was still no closer to realising the formula,
to such desired oriental grandeur...that was until i
spotted a helpful comment left by a passing peer
...cheers ToM...certainly pushed things foward!?

^^^the conclusion

CHARACTER STUDY - LING (cont.)

2008-12-08T13:35:00.001-08:00

CHARACTER DESIGN - TIGER

2008-12-07T05:59:00.000-08:00

CONCEPT ART - TREES AND MOUNTAINS

2008-12-07T05:04:00.000-08:00

Thought it best to do a bit a bit of research into
the types of shapes i wish to incorperate into
my final setting. Although theres is still to much
detail im pretty happy with the overall shape and such...

THE MANY FACES OF LING

2008-12-05T09:00:00.000-08:00

CONSIDERING LAYOUT AND SETTING

2008-12-04T09:24:00.000-08:00

So i finally found some inspiration that i feel really
represents what im aiming to achieve...
mostly watercolours and inks were used and the
colour never seems to peak beyond a dull gray/blue/green/brown
colour pallete... This would work well with the mood/
atmosphere that im trying to achieve; as the story is
quite sad and tragic..!? The general look im trying to
achieve is similar to that of a dull, rainy day...
...however i wish to achieve this without actually
making it rain...

...here are a few examples of what i
mean...

Although the geral tone shall be somber and gray
there are still points in the story where the mood lifts...
in chinese painting the colour quickly and effectively sets
the mood...

The type of painting that is typical of china is something very
special indeed...it is special for a reason...because its bloooody
hard to achieve...after doing much research, experimentation
i have come to the conclusion that i shall have to find
the formula to this "poetic simplicty"

In my search for such a formula i stumbled upon this amazing
video clip. THanKS WaLT!!!

(Making Of Mulan -- Art Design)

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=CR4vQjJGblk&feature=related

------

In conclusion my setting should have "inner strength"
incorperating big shapes and strong positive detail!
For now i can get started on sketching the backgrounds
but i shall leave the colour and finshing detail for when
my shiny new brushes arrive...what i got at the moment
is no good...ayyyyyyyyyyyy

heres what i pushed out earlier...just experimenting with
the medium really not what im after at all but heading in
the right direction.

Pissing around with watercolour^^^^

Pissing around with digital paint^^^^

ANIMATIC - SECOND PASS

2008-12-02T01:39:00.000-08:00

Finally finished...decided to use a tablet!

bit of a random decision but its all fun and
games. Proved challenging at points hence the
rough visuals...just an excuse to practice on the
tablet really-- very impressive tooo...
...the possiblities are endless!

...timing isnt brilliant throughout...not cool...
and im not convinced i made it obvious enough
that LING pierces a stone..."a stone that just
happens to resemble the form of a sleeping
tiger"...i guess this means i need to work on some
great acting...best get crrrraaaccking on some
expression /acting studies me thinks?!

no sound other than the music at the moment
bit pooo but ill update when ready.

CONCEPT ART FOR SETTING - stage 2

2008-11-27T09:03:00.000-08:00

I bought some watercolours today; this being so
i have spent the day experimenting., nothing like
how i want my final aesthetic...just a bit of fun really

Tried to keep the colour dull and translucent -- no dark detail as of
yet., thought it best to do this in stages...just in case i mess up.
I dont really have a great understanding of how the chinese use
colour yet... i should do some more research on the subject.

All a bit random at the moment, will definately need to do some
more research into the use of colour in traditional chinese art.
inking planned for tomorrow so ill update images then... More
importantly best get that 2nd animatic finished and filmed!?

CHARACTER DESIGN - stage 2

2008-11-26T10:35:00.000-08:00

So here is a few more character designs... getting close to the final
realization i hope...just colour, movement and expression studies
to go. Tried to keep it as simple as possible; minimal detail to help
keep those tweens on model. Anyway heres a few sketches
ive knocked out today...

Introducing my main man...LING!

Inspirations for LING's design include fireman sam
and samurai jack...

It is uncanny how much JIA looks like my girlfriend.
i didnt mean to do it but aaaaaaaaayyyyyyy.
Here she is...

LING's beloved JIA should be recognized instantly as kind,
gentle and demure. I tried to keep her as cute as possible. By
giving her; those classic 'MATT SEWELL' eyes the cute look
becomes inevitable...

...heres a few examples from the ol chap

What a legend...

...Once again with JIA's charcter:
i tried to keep the construction down
to a real minimum.

A little more work needed here i think. Im sure i'll
completely nail her model once i get started
on the movement/expression studies.

...

Oh i almost forgot; best get working on a tiger...surely wont be easy
but im up for it... Actually heres one i made earlier (one
of my storyboards from my 1st animatic)
very dirty, bezzzzzzst getting sketching.

ANIMATIC - FIRST PASS

2008-11-20T19:20:00.000-08:00

Bit of a rough draft but you get the idea...

MORE INSPIRATION

2008-11-19T12:57:00.000-08:00

Some more you say...?!

Two contrasting styles - that i intend to cross-pollinate!!!

<<<<

lovin the stained background
old looking but still fresh...

...lovely jubbly i could achieve
this with the old tea bag trick

might be a good idea to invest
in some posh parchment. start
experimenting.

This example >>>>>

is a lot cleaner; more modern looking than
the previous example but still a fantastic
example of how i intend to style my animation.
Of coarse it is crucial to translate mood and
atmosphere in each setting, so i best get painting;
maybe try out a few different mediums/
colour palette's, styles, methods etc...

...Post em soooooooon if all goes well!!!

MUST DASH.............!!!???

MORE ON AESTHETIC

2008-11-15T05:59:00.000-08:00

Simplicity is key to my aesthetic; dull colour pallete, lots of
neutral ground!

Oh yeah! i want it to look aged and weathered, as if
it were animated on century old parchmen --
yet at the same time
look completely fresh and innovative!

(goes without saying though -- of coarse!)

loving these brush painted backgrounds. Will definately
have to look at more Chinese illustrations...

Another great example of how i intend to colour my
animation. Just as with the backgrounds i want the same
dull colour pallete; and lots of neutral ground. This would
most probly be done on a mac, in photoshop or something

best get experimenting...

CONCEPT ART - CHARACTER DESIGN - stage 1

2008-11-13T07:01:00.000-08:00

What do people think?

CONCEPT ART FOR SETTING - stage 1

2008-11-13T06:14:00.000-08:00

I produced these sketches a while ago; i like the images however
i feel it best to experiment with ink and brush in the future.

These are lovely examples of the delicate style i wish to achieve in my animation.

2008-11-13T03:16:00.000-08:00